Pants hanger



Aug. 20, 1963 E. GUSTAFSON PANTS HANGER Filed July 15, 1962 fowl/v P GUSTHFS-UN INVENTOR.

United States Patent 3,101,185 PANTS HANGER Edwin P. Gustafson, 64 Washington St., Forestville, Conn. Filed July 13, 1962, Ser. No. 209,711 2 Claims. (Cl. 2.48316) My invention relates to improvements in pants hangers.

It is known that, when the pants are suspended in an inverted position with the cuffs held between the jaws of a holder, the creases and wrinkles in the cloth of the pants caused by the Wear tend to flatten and smoothen out by the natural resiliency of the cloth. My experience is that this process of eliminating the unwanted creases and wrinkles in pants can be greatly accelerated and made more effective by pressing the thus suspended pants against a smooth flat surface with an alternating rubbing action. This alternating rubbing action, performed by a brush, pad, or by the hand, flattens and spreads the wrinkled cloth, straightens the bent threads so that the pants left in the holder overnight will be in proper condition for wear in the morning This convenient method of maintaining the proper appearance of the pants is particularly advantageous for the transient guests of motels and hotels whose schedule of travel does not make it feasible to have their pants pressed in the conventional way.

One of the important objects of my invention is to provide a pants hanger which is mounted on a vertical smooth flat surface making it very convenient to apply the above described alternating smoothing action for the elimination of unwanted creases and wrinkles in the pants.

Another important object of my invention is to provide a pants hanger which may be mounted on the doors and walls or within the closets, requiring very little space and not subject to easy unauthorized removal, which points are of great importance for motels and hotels.

A further important object of my invention is to provide a novel pants hanger which due to its simplicity in construction is very economical in manufacture.

Other objects and advantages of my invention will be apparent during the course of the following description.

In the accompanying drawing, forming a part of the present application, wherein for the purpose of illustration is shown a preferred form of my invention,

FIGURE 1 is a frontal elevational view of the preferred form of my pants hanger,

FIGURE 2 is a vertical sectional view of the same.

Referring to the drawing, in FIG. 2 the numeral 1 designates the vertical flat surface which carries my pants hanger and which has an important part in the elimination of the wrinkles in the pants.

In the preferred form of my invention, illustrated in the drawing, the body of the pants hanger is formed of a single sheet of resilient metallic or plastic material folded over around a horizontal axis and having the following parts: the base plate 2, the front plate 3 and the connecting position 4. The base plate 2 is permanently secured to said vertical flat surface 1. In the preferred form illustrated the base plate is attached to the vertical surface 1 by means of the screw 9 passing through the hole 7 of the base plate 2. Opposite to this screw the front plate -3 is provided with a hole 8 to permit the installation of the screw 9.

The front plate 3, connected to the base plate 2 by the connecting portion 4, normally occupies the position indicated by the dotted lines in FIG. 2, but due to the resiliency of the connecting portion 4 the front plate 3 3,101,185- Patented Aug. 20, 1963 2 may be moved into the position shown by the full lines in FIG. 2 when pressure is applied in this direction. In the form illustrated the base plate 2 and the front plate 3 have similar outlines with their lower portions widened. The lower portion of the base plate 2 forms the stationary jaw 5 and the lower portion of the front plate 3 forms the movable jaw 6; the function of these opposing jaws is to clamp and hold the folded cuffs of the pants. The surfaces of these jaws in contact with the cuffs may be roughened to obtained a better hold.

The front plate 3 has a protruding middle portion, called the cam surface 10, which is an essential element of my invention. This cam surface 10 is provided with a slot 11, shown in FIG. 1.

Another essential element of my invention is the operating lever '12 which is pivotally connected to the base plate '2 by the element 13 which, in the form illustrated consists of 'U-slraped strips secured to the base plate 2. This pivotal connection is so arranged that the lever 12, extending through the slot 11, can freelyswing from one end of the slot 11 to the other end. The free end of the lever 12 is provided with a knob 14 which is so designed thatits inner end may engage the cam surface 10 of the front plate 3 adjacent to the slot '11.

The lever 12 and the cam surface 10 are so designed that when the lever 12 is at the lower end of the slot 11, as shown by the fulll lines in FIG. 2,.1the knob 14, engaging the cam surface 10, forces the front plate 3 into the position shown by the full lines, which we call the closed position, thereby causing the clamping of the cuffs of the pants 15 between the jaws 5 and 6.

When the lever 12 is moved into the position shown by the dot-ted lines in FIG. 2, the knob 14 releases the cam surface 10 permitting the front plate 3 to return into its normal position, shown by the dotted line, which we call open position. As a result of this the movable jaw 6 moves away fromthe stationary jaw 5, releasing the cuffs of the pants 15.

The operation of my invention is as follows? According to the present fashion the Well pressed trousers have a pair of opposing longitudinal creases located at the front and at the back, respectively, of each leg. The object of my device is to accentuate these desirable longitudinal creases and to eliminate the unwanted creases and wrinkles caused by wear in the cloth of the pants.

la the application of my device the first step is to place the cuffs of the two legs of the trousers side by side flat with the desirable longitudinal creases along the edges of the legs of the trousers. Then, with the lever 12 and the jaws Sand 6 in the open position, the flattened cuffs are placed between the jaws 5 and 6, and the lever 12 is moved into the closed position causing the firm clamping of the cuffs of the trousers between the jaws 5 and 6. Following this, by repeated alternating rubbing motion the cloth of the trousers are pressed against the vertical flat surface 1, accompanied by downward and horizontal stretching of the cloth, after which the trousers are left in the hanger overnight.

The release of the trousers from the hanger is accomplished by moving the lever 12 into the open position, shown by the dotted lines in FIG. 2.

The said alternating rubbing motion can be accomplished by a brush, or a pad of cloth, or even by the palm of the operator. simultaneous stretching of the cloth is an essential part of the application of my invention which accomplishes the preliminary straightening of the threads bent or wrinkled by wear, thereby making the smoothening effect of the overnight rest of the trousers secured in the pants hanger much more positive :than with the customary pants This operation, combined with thev 3 hangers not having the convenience of a vertical flat surface adjacent to the suspended trousers.

Itis to be understood that the form of my invention, herein described and illustrated, is only a preferred example of the same, and that various changes in the size, shape, and in the arrangement of the parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of my invention or the scope of the s-ubjoined claims.

I claim:

1. In combination with a vertical flat surface, a pants hanger formed of a folded sheet of resilient material and comprising a base plate secured to said vertical surface and having its lower portion adapted as a stationary jaw; a front plate, having its upper end joined to the upper end of said base plate by means of a resilient connecting portion which permits the swinging of said front plate from its normal, open position toward said base plate into its closed position as a result of pressure applied on said front plate, said front plate having its lower portion adapted as a movable jaw cooperating with the said stationary jaw in clamping and holding the cuffs of a pair of trousers when said front plate is in its closed position, said front plate having at its middle portion a cam surface with a slot; an operating lever pivotally connected to said base plate and extending through said slot of the cam surface, said lever being free to swing from its open position, located at one end of said slot, to its closed position, located at the other end of said slot, and back; a knob secured to the free end of said lever and being adapted to engage said cam surface when said lever is in its closed position, forcing said front plate to move into its closed position and thereby causing clamping of the cuffs of a pair of trousers between said jaws, said knob being adapted to release said cam surface when said lever is moved into its open position, permitting said 4 front plate to return to its normal open position, thereby causing the release of said cuffs.-

2. In combination with a vertical flat surface, a pants hanger comprising a base plate secured to said vertical flat surface and having its lower portion forming a stationary jaw; a front plate having its upper end resiliently connected to the upper end of said base plate permitting the swinging of said front plate from its normal open position into its closed position when under corresponding pressure, said front plate having its lower portion forming a movable jaw adapted to cooperate with said stationary jaw in clamping and holding the cuffs of a pair of trousers in the closed position of said front plate, said front plate having at its middle portion a cam surface provided with a slot; an operating lever extending through said slot and having pivotal connection with said base plate permitting the swinging of the said lever within said slot between its open and closed positions; a knob secured to the outer end of said lever and being so adapted that, in the closed position of said lever said knob engages said cam surface, forcing said front plate to swing into its closed position and thereby clamping said cuffs between said jaws, and in the open position of said lever said knob releases said cam surface resulting in the return of said front plate into its open position and in the release of said cuffs by said jaws.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

1. IN COMBINATION WITH A VERTICAL FLAT SURFACE, A PANTS HANGER FORMED OF A FOLDED SHEET OF RESILIENT MATERIAL AND COMPRISING A BASE PLATE SECURED TO SAID VERTICAL SURFACE AND HAVING ITS LOWER PORTION ADAPTED AS A STATIONARY JAW; A FRONT PLATE, HAVING ITS UPPER END JOINED TO THE UPPER END OF SAID BASE PLATE BY MEANS OF A RESILIENT CONNECTING PORTION WHICH PERMITS THE SWINGING OF SAID FRONT PLATE FROM ITS NORMAL, OPEN POSITION TOWARD SAID BASE PLATE INTO ITS CLOSED POSITION AS A RESULT OF PRESSURE APPLIED ON SAID FRONT PLATE, SAID FRONT PLATE HAVING ITS LOWER PORTION ADAPTED AS A MOVABLE JAW COOPERATING WITH THE SAID STATIONARY JAW IN CLAMPING AND HOLDING THE CUFFS OF A PAIR OF TROUSERS WHEN SAID FRONT PLATE IS IN ITS CLOSED POSITION, SAID FRONT PLATE HAVING AT ITS MIDDLE PORTION A CAM SURFACE WITH A SLOT; AN OPERATING LEVER PIVOTALLY CONNECTED 